“Rough meeting, huh?”
“I’ll tell you about it on the way home.”I patted his side and moved to the passenger door.Declan was already there, opening it for me and giving me a boost up.
After I explained what had happened with Colin and Uncle Joe, Declan said, “I’m glad I didn’t know that earlier or I might have stopped them and beaten your cousin unconscious.”He glanced over at me.“We passed on the road to your Mom’s.It looked like Colin was yelling and waving his hands around.Your uncle looked blank, staring straight ahead.”
“I’m sorry.”I rested my hand on his thigh.“That means you were waiting a long time for me.”
He lifted my hand and kissed my wrist.“It’s a very restful courtyard.I opened the windows, tipped my seat back, and enjoyed the breeze.I sensed you nearby, so I was fine.”
He gestured to the time display on his dashboard.“I’m going to have to leave in a few hours to meet with the pack.Are you hungry?We can stop somewhere for food or if you want to rest, I can pick something up for us to eat at home.”
I was bummed about him being out all night.I never slept well when he was away.“Can we go to my studio then?”
He looked over quickly before returning his attention to the winding road.“You don’t want to go to our home?”
“No.It’s just—” Shit.I was going to have to tell him about the vision.Sighing, I turned in my seat toward him.“I love the home you built for us.When you’re not with me, though, I have nightmares and wake up.Sometimes I bake, which I can do in our home, but sometimes I want to work.Normally, I’d walk over to the gallery but there was something about me in the shared Council vision.”
Declan pulled over onto the dirt beside the road and stopped the SUV.He turned in his seat, his expression severe.“What did you see?”
I hadn’t been expecting this much focused attention.I’d been hoping that if he was driving while I told him, it wouldn’t seem too dire.“Okay, well, I didn’t see me—which isn’t unusual for me and visions—but Mom and Faith both said it was clearly me.Anyway, what I saw was a woman walking down the grassy side of the road.Mom and Faith say it’s the stretch of road between the gallery and your workshop.”
“Our home,” he corrected.
I nodded.“Right.So a car was racing down the road, passing other cars, and drove straight at me.”
“A car is going to run you down?”His voice was gruffer than normal as his eyes lightened to wolf gold.“And hit you?”
I thought about the sounds of bones breaking and the blood on the windshield.“In the vision, yes, but now that we know, I won’t walk between our two homes anymore.For a while, anyway, until that possible future disappears.”
His growl rumbled in the quiet.“Was this car out of control because it was speeding or was it aiming for you?”
Glancing out the window, I mumbled, “Not sure.It was hard to tell?—”
“Arwyn.”
He was already on edge.I didn’t want to push him over, but I also promised I’d tell him.“We all see parts of the vision from different perspectives.From my point of view, the woman—who I didn’t see as me—was walking along the side of the road and the driver floored it, aiming for her.”
Declan reached for his phone.“Kenji and Daniel can handle tonight’s run.I’m staying with you.”
I pulled his phone from his hands.“I know it sounds scary, but I’m fine.Look.I’m sitting right here with you and I’m fine.I had a vision a month or so ago about my Uncle Andrew riding his bike and getting hit by a truck.We told him not to ride his bike on that route again and he’s alive and well.When I have visions, it’s like of all the possible futures, this is the most likely right now.Once conditions change, it becomes less and less likely until it disappears as a possibility.”
I unbuckled, leaned in, and kissed him.“You don’t need to babysit me.That’ll only drive us both nuts.Until the possibility fades, I need to avoid walking between our places.That’s all.And that’s why I’m asking you to take me to the gallery.I won’t need a ride to work.I’ll already be there, and Bracken will be nearby if something comes up.”
He ran a hand through his hair.“I hear what you’re saying, but my heart is still racing.I’m not okay with leaving you tonight, even if what you saw happened on the road and you’ll be safe and sound in your studio.”
“You know I can take care of myself,” I reminded him.“And your pack needs you.”
Pulling his phone out of my hands, he began texting.“This is for me.I can’t leave you right now.We’ll go home.We’ll have dinner.We’ll make an early night of it.Kenji and Daniel are perfectly capable of handling a simple run.”
When he finished, he put his phone back down and said, “Anything else I should know—not what you think Ineedto know.What you know I’dwantto know about you.You don’t have to tell me other people’s secrets.I want to know what I need to be aware of foryou.”
I shrugged.“I’m hungry.I meant to take some of the leftover sandwiches home with me, but I forgot.”
He turned back onto the road.“Okay.Good.Food is easy.What are you in the mood for?”
Tapping my hand on my stomach, I considered.“Pasta.”
He turned the corner and pulled over again.“Sounds good.Pick a restaurant so we can look at the menu online.”
